Vacaville lewd act case settled

A Vacaville man accused of attempting to arrange a sexual act with a minor he solicited in a supermarket parking lot late last year accepted a plea deal in Solano County Superior Court on Thursday.

Juventino Zaragoza, 44, appeared in the Fairfield courtroom of Judge Donna Stashyn for the setting of a jury trial date when it was announced that a plea agreement had been reached. Zaragoza had been arrested on Sept. 3 by Vacaville police for an incident in a supermarket parking lot in which he allegedly tried to solicit a young girl sitting in a parked car.

He had been charged with one count of a lewd act on a child under the age of 14 and one count of meeting a minor for lewd purposes.

On Thursday, those charges were dismissed after Zaragoza pleaded no contest to a felony count of false imprisonment. Having been held in Solano County Jail custody since his arrest in September, Stashyn ordered his release from custody.

He was ordered back to court at 9 a.m. on April 24 for sentencing.

According to Vacaville police, Zaragoza approached the young girl while her mother was shopping. He offered her money in exchange for the sexual act and left the area, but not before leaving her with his phone number, according to police.

The victim reported the incident to her parents, who in turn called police.

Arrangements were made for Zaragoza to return to the parking lot for the sexual act in exchange for $50. When he returned to the parking lot, he was identified by the victim and arrested, police said.